Environmental fines

Everybody carrying out an activity has a duty under the Resource Management Act 1991 to avoid unreasonable noise and to avoid, remedy or mitigate any adverse environmental effect arising from the activity, whether or not it is covered by a resource consent.

How to pay
When they are issued

How to pay

You must pay the infringement fee within 28 days of the date the infringement notice was issued. Payment options are:

pay online - pay by credit card
post or deliver your payment. Refer to your infringement notice for details.

When they are issued

An environmental infringement may be issued for the following reasons:

breach of resource consent conditions
breach of district plan rules
breach of an abatement notice
depositing litter

Breach of resource consent conditions

An environmental infringement may be issued to either the consent holder (property owner) or the contractors carrying out the work. The consent holder is liable for the actions of the contractors, and contractors are liable for breaching conditions of consent. As such it is really important that all parties working on a site should be aware of the resource consent conditions.

Resource consents, when granted, are subject to conditions. The conditions reflect the district plan rules and policies and are in place to avoid adverse effects that may arise during site works. Common conditions include control of mud and sediment run-off from earthworks, construction restrictions, protection of specific trees and planting of new trees.

Various actions may be taken by local authorities if the conditions of a resource consent aren't being met. Depending on the circumstances, these include issuing:

an instant fine
an abatement notice - this is essentially an official warning that the RMA is being contravened, or
an enforcement order - court-backed order demanding compliance.

Severe breaches of the district plan or conditions of resource consent can result in prosecution. The penalty imposed by the courts may include heavy fines and/or imprisonment.

Breach of district plan rules

An environmental infringement may also be issued for a breach of a district plan rule. Typical breaches may include

mud on the road - you are in breach of the district plan if you allow any silt or sediment to enter the stormwater drains or channels from earthworks or bare land. No mud should be tracked onto the public road.
trees - you may not cut, damage, alter, injure, destroy or partially destroy either scheduled trees or those protected by general tree protection controls without resource consent.

Breach of an abatement notice

An abatement notice is a notice served by an enforcement officer requiring a person to take action, or to refrain from taking action, in order to comply with the Resource Management Act or the terms and conditions of a resource consent.

A breach of an abatement notice is considered a serious matter, it may result in either a heavy fine (or fines) or prosecution.

If you are concerned about any works you are planning to do, or regarding some enforcement action that has been taken please contact us.

Depositing litter

Infringement notices and fees can be issued under the provisions of sections 13 and 14 of the Litter Act 1979, for the following offences:

depositing any litter or, having deposited any litter, leaving it in or on a public place
depositing any litter or, having deposited any litter, leaving it in or on private land without the consent of its occupier.

For more, see Litter offences

Updated August 2007